Once more we delve into the realms of greatness today, for those who haven’t been following each year we countdown the days until that most festive of times with our Album of the Year list. Chris will be choosing the odd days and I shall be doing the odd days, so far we have revealed.
- Jakub Zyteki – Wishful Lotus Proof
- Agent Fresco – Destrier
- Cain’s Offering – Stormcrow
- Tesseract – Polaris
- Unleash The Archers – Time Stands Still
- Lamb of God – VII : Sturm Und Drang
- Lindemann – Skills and Pills
- The Black Dahlia Murder – Abysmal
- Amorphis – Under The Red Cloud
Which brings us to…
Steven Wilson – Hand. Cannot. Erase.
The idea of the concept album in the modern day is a baffling one. With the disposable era of music that we have entered with streaming services making music almost redundant, or so it would seem… Releasing his fourth solo album Steven Wilson returned this year with his absolute masterstroke Hand.Cannot.Erase.
The pinnacle of the conceptual plain, Wilson was inspired by the true events caught in the documentary Dreams of A Life. Detailing the true story of a woman, Joyce Carol Vincent, a social wallflower who was known by many and loved by all and how it was possible for her to have died and remain undiscovered for three years. Not only creating a story arc for our character, when listening to Hand Cannot Erase each minute detail was taken into account to bring the beautiful vignette into the setting of a life. Detailing significant events in our nameless protagonist’s life throughout the album, Hand Cannot Erase’s influences are absolutely bountiful and though perhaps might not be strictly Metal is true genius.
Loneliness has always been a shoulder to cry on in the man’s career but exploring the anonymity of the modern day outclasses everything out this year. Close in proximity we, as humans couldn’t be further from each other. Monopolised by technology personal interaction has drastically faded. Making solemnity his muse, the idea of solace in a city is portrayed beautifully. Peace in the witching hours, the twilight kiss of dusk we find moments of salvation. Brought together in Wilson’s beautifully choreographed artwork, personalising something as revealing as a photo album for the world to see. Brings to life the universal ghosts of regret.
Which is where the genius lies personalising the anonymous for the masses. Fans may never meet their fictional character but have personalised an entity that is the symbol of the anonymous. The sixty two minute listen forever acts as a time capsule. Able to dip into our faceless character’s life of loneliness and abject empathy at a moments notice. There is also a beautiful sense of helplessness as we can only ever listen, never able to intervene in our heroines life. Beautifully tied together with the ribbon that is Wilson’s voice the world class musicians excel to no end with beautiful solo’s on “Regret #9” or the three minute wonder that is our title track.
The haunting choral of “Routine” with singer Ninet Tayeb lending her silken voice creates a beautiful contrast whilst acting as a thread in our hazy story. An introspective tour de force, the record works both on a simplistic level with tracks like the soliloquy “Perfect Life” to the all prog wizardry of “Ancestral” neatly tucked in with the ambiguous closer of “Happy Returns”. Always retaining the sense of mystery and a prickling of uncertainty of our characters fate the album combines the wistful air of nostalgia, the cold biting sense of loneliness with the anonymity of modern society. Blossoming from the seventies tweed cocoon that was The Raven That Refused To Sing And Other Stories Steven Wilson has embodied the idea of true loneliness. True in every sense of the word Hand Cannot Erase is a masterpiece.
